Kuwait City, March 10, 2009: The OCA Sport Congress Commission and Scientific Board met at the Courtyard Marriott Hotel on Tuesday afternoon to finalise preparations for the three-day event, running from March 12-14.

Commission Director Dr. Reza Gharakhanlou told the meeting that 315 scientific papers had been received from 17 Asian countries, and 53 of them had been selected for presentation in a series of workshops.

In addition to 74 invited speakers, this made a total of 127 presentations in six themes, plus a minimum of 10 poster presentations.

The meeting decided that the presentations of invited speakers would not be evaluated, and that only the selected papers would be eligible to receive awards on the final afternoon.

As a result, only eight prizes will be presented in total -- one for the best paper in each of the six themes, plus the best two posters.

The six themes are: sports science in Asia, governance of sports in Asia, women's sports in Asia, sports marketing in Asia, Asian games and sports and the environment.

"There is high expectation within the OCA Family and everybody is waiting for the big event," said Dr. Reza.

"These three days will be a very crucial and critical moment, and there is a general responsibility for all of us to help and have a successful congress."

Moderators in the workshops were encouraged to be strict with the speakers, as organisers were running a tight schedule with 15-minute slots for each presentation.

Dr. Reza added that the speakers would be coming from 26 Asian countries, six non-Asian countries and six international sports organisations.

"The fact that we received papers from 17 Asian countries, and that all 45 Asian NOCs will be attending, is a big step," he said.

"Next time we would like to receive papers from all 45 NOCs."

On the first morning of the Congress, March 12, the OCA President, H.E. Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, and IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge will deliver keynote speeches.

The event will take place in the Arraya Ballroom of the Courtyard Marriott Hotel